If you can’t beat them, buy them.
That seems to be the logic behind the increase in Costa Rican players joining MLS teams. Recent months have seen the Central American country hold the upper hand at both club and country level. Last October, Deportivo Saprissa eliminated Portland Timbers from the CONCACAF Champions League. Meanwhile, in World Cup qualifying, Costa Rica dealt a heavy blow to the United States with a 4-0 win that ended Jurgen Klinsmann’s reign as coach. As a result, Costa Ricans are very much on the radar of MLS teams.
This is not a new phenomenon, as evidenced by Alvaro Saborío’s eight years with Real Salt Lake and D.